Section 2

Powers of ministers or Designated Authorities

    1- The competent Ministers, or the designated authorities of the GCC member states may, at any time, jointly amend these regulations, repeal regulations or issue additional regulations, decisions or directives for the management, control and use of a port or a class of ports, including

    1/1             the navigation and use by ships of a port and its approaches, the control of ship traffic, reporting, mooring, towage, berthing and the loading and unloading of ships;

    1/2      the maintenance of order, security, safety of persons, ports

and port facilities and the protection of the land, air and marine environment;

    1/3             the removal, destruction or disposal of a ship, material or other things interfering with navigation or operations and the recovery of the costs incurred;

    1/4      the traffic and movement of persons, vehicles, or cargo;

    1/5             the transportation, handling or storing of cargo and of dangerous goods or other substances that constitute or may constitute a danger to life or property;

    1/6             in consent with the competent Government organs to provide, where reasonably practical, assistance and cooperation to these competent organs by a port authority

    1/6/1   to comply with the provisions of the IMO International

Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, 1979

    1/6/2   for the determination of places of refuge for ships in distress (as per IMO resolution A.949(23));

    1/6/3   to support the maritime assistance service MAS (as per

IMO resolution A.950(23));

    1/6/4   to conduct, under SOLAS regulation I/21 and MARPOL

73/78 articles 8 and 12, and the Load Lines Convention, investigations into any casualty occurring to ships,

subject to the pertinent guidelines described in those conventions;

                     1/6/5   to promote adherence to and comply with the Regional Conventions aimed at protecting the states’ land, air and marine environment, notably the:

1/6/5/1 Regional Convention for the Conservation of

the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (1982), Entry into force: 20 August 1985, including the Protocols related thereto, always as amended, and

1/6/5/2 Kuwait Regional Convention for Co-operation on the Protection of the Marine Environment from Pollution, 1978, including the Protocols related thereto, always as amended.

                                                1/6/6 to establish medical services for seamen on board ships including the required infrastructure and equipment for the services’ mobility.

1/7      any obligation under Annex 1 to these regulations.

2- A regulation, decision or directive made under 1.

2/1     shall be binding on the port authority;

2/2     shall not come into effect before 90 days as from the date of the regulations’ publication unless the situation requires an earlier coming into effect which shall be so published.

3- A competent Minister, or a designated authority, may, with respect to ports, enter into agreements and issue licenses to provide services, rights or privileges, as the Minister or the designated authority considers appropriate and may agree by contract or license to accept fees for those services, rights and privileges.

4- The competent Minister, or the designated authority, may confer the power under 3. to a port authority or to a body corporate acting as port authority.